Report Says Higher Education Still Worthwhile Despite Rising Tuition

Despite rising tuition costs, higher education is still worthwhile because college-degree holders have higher incomes and better opportunities for employment, according to a report released Friday by the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education. Employers are increasingly requiring bachelor’s degrees as part of their hiring processes, the report said. In the next eight years, the report says, more than half of Kentucky jobs will require some sort of higher education.

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Still, students are also wrestling with increasing tuition costs each year.

“As expensive as college may seem, it is still probably the single best investment an individual can make in his or her life,” said Bob King, the CPE's president.

A college degree could mean a difference of a million dollars for Kentuckians, King said.

People with college degrees are three times more likely to land a job and make more money, as compared to people with only a high school diploma, the report said.

“In terms of income, somebody with a bachelor’s degree is going to earn over the course of their lifetime, nearly a million dollars more than someone who only has a high school diploma,” King says.